Use of old photograph in a commercial project - any advice?

Member

Joined

25 Apr 2013

Messages

7

I took this pic a while ago in Barking from a public road bridge and it has been quietly in my gallery ever since. There's no train visible in the pic as you can see - it's basically a cityscape that happens to be of rail tracks, some of which are underground 4 rail lines, some of which are mainline.

However, I am now working on the cover artwork for an anthology of railway-related fiction (Rustblind and Silverbright - my own specialist small press) and I am considering using that Barking shot as part of the artwork. The picture is not the entirety of the design by any means, only about a quarter of the total cover. Technically I suppose that is commercial use, right? (Though whether I make any money on it is another matter!) What I am not sure about is whether this requires any kind of permission or permit from anyone, or whether it can just be used as a fairly casual shot from a public road? I have seen info about photographers rights and the necessity of a permit for commercial photography, but have been unable to find anything that really covers this specific case. Anybody got any ideas? Thanks in advance!

RailUK Forums

Member

Joined

20 Feb 2009

Messages

506

Hi,
There are no reasons why you cannot use this photo for your commercial purposes.

It was taken by yourself so you own the copyright.
It was taken from public property and there were no restrictions on taking photos there.
It does not include anyone's intellectual property - in the form of logos, designs or images.
There are no people in the image and so there are no "model consents" needed.

Jason

(This is general advice - not specific tailored legal advice. If in doubt, consult a paid lawyer.)

Established Member

I can confirm apx068's reply and will only amend the third point by adding one crucial word :-

"It does not include anyone else's intellectual property".
It already is your intellectual property.

It is your property.
Perhaps you've done nothing to assert your ownership, and an IP solicitor would probably advise you to do so, such as to add your name to the image and to archive an authenticated copy, but those actions will only be of value if, sometime in the future, someone else was to attempt to use the image as if it were their own and you wished to make it easier for yourself to challenge that use.